Much like the aftermath of the debut of “Surviving R. Kelly” on Lifetime this past January, last night’s airing of “Suriving R. Kelly ll: The Reckoning” is expected to lead to furtive conversations regarding not only sexual assault, ut now child abuse. After the initial airing in January calls to sexual assault hotlines increased by 35 percent, and #MuteRKelly activists were further galvanized to protest for R. Kelly’s record label to drop him.
But some of the more explosive revelations from the six-part docuseries came from R. Kelly’s brothers, Carey and Bruce Kelly.
Carey Kelly said that he and R. Kelly were abused as kids by their elderly neighbor, known as “Mr. Henry.” In his 60s, Mr. Henry would expose himself to them, buy them food, and once took R.Kelly upstairs and “tried some inappropriate stuff with him.”
Brothers Bruce and Carey were wrought with emotion in recalling the additional abuse Robert suffered at the hands of a close family member.
Public outcry ensured the survivors would not be ignored and more women came forward with allegations of abuse. Seven weeks after the debut of the docuseries, the Cook County attorney’s office indicted the R&B singer on 10 felony counts of aggravated sexual assault involving four alleged victims and spanning over a decade, ultimately leading to Kelly’s arrest. Then in July 2019, R. Kelly was arrested on charges including child pornography and kidnapping, facing a total of 18 federal charges.
Produced by Kreativ Inc, “Surviving R. Kelly Part II: The Reckoning” is executive produced by Joel Karsberg and Jesse Daniels of Kreativ Inc.; Dream Hampton, Tamra Simmons, Maria Pepin, and Brie Miranda Bryant who executive produce for Lifetime. Sudi Khosropur is co-executive producer. Surviving R. Kelly falls under Lifetime’s commitment to provide a platform to give women a voice where they have previously been unheard to bring awareness to the alleged abuses and harassment of women.
